Dirigible airship



A. FABER DIRI-GIBLE AIRSHIP Ang. 7, 1928.

Filed June 24, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet .l

33)? @Hom/1mg# Aug. 7, 192s. 1,679,565-

A. FABER DIRIGIBLE AlnsHzP Filed June 24.., 1927 r 2 sheets-sneer 2 Patented ug. 7, 1928-.

UNITED STATES AUGUST FABER, oF NEW YORK, N. Y.

DIRIGIBLE AIRSHIP.

Application ined' June 24,Y

This invention lrelates to airships and more particularly to airships of the dirigible type where the weight oi the structure is mainly or totally supported by a lighter than air gas. y

The main object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved dirigible airship of the class where lighter than air gas containers are used to provide the necessary lifting power,l which is designed soas to offer the minimum of resistance to transversely directed air currents, at the same time possessing great stability and speed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dirigible airship ota novel and improved design, the buoyancy of which is provided by gas containers having relatively large support-ing surfaces adding to the stability of the structure as a whole, and also assistingthe lifting action of the gas.

A 'further object is to provide a novel type ol" airship possessed oiI great stability due to the relation existing between its center of propulsion rand its center of pressure, de'- signed so as to oi'ler a minimum of resistance to the air both in a longitudinal and in a transversal sense. l v

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will more fully appear as the descriptionpreceeds and will be set forthr and claimed in the appended claims.

Airships of the dirigible type generally comprise a gas bag or container from which is suspended a car or frame containing the motors and the quarters for the crew as well as the supply offfuel. As a general rule, the lifting power is entirely provided by the gas contained within the gas container, and as a consequence the container generally has considerablebulk and finds a proportional resistance in the air tending to oppose its progress.

In airships of the type more generally used, the gas container is cigar shaped and has quite a considerable diameter ior the greater portion of its length intermediate of its tips. Due to this design, airships have often become unmanageable when exposed to strong winds and storms and their naviga tion Iconstitutes a serious problem even in the presence oi' lwinds of .a moderate intensity, especially when the wind is directedy transversely of the body of the airship.

Another lfactor which greatly affects the stability of these structures is the relative 192i. serial No. 261,16.

arrangement of the center ot' propulsion and the center of pressure. As a general rule, the propellers are carried by the car and are approximately in line with the center ofv gravity of therstructure. ADue to the fact that the maximum weight'is 'concentrated in the car, the center of gravity ismuch lower than the longitudinal -axis vof the gas .conf tamer; on the other hand, the 'bulk of the car as compared to that of the gas container `is relatively small and therefore the center of pressure is considerably higher than the center of gravity. A

Due to these conditions, a tilting moment generally occursA between the center of ropulsion and the center of pressure, ten ing to oii'set the horizontal alignment of the airship, and this tends tol dispose the bulk of the gas container at an angle which does not coincide with its position of least resistance.

The car portion of the structure furthermore, usually comprises a frame having substantially vertical sides and materially increases the amount of surface exposed to the action of lateral air currents, further affect,- Aing the stabilityv of the structure.

The airship forming the object lof the present invention is practically free of these undesirable features, due to the improved a1'- rangement o'f its various parts. By virtue of its construct-ion, the lateral resistance of the structure has been reduced to a minimum, so

Furthermore, myy improved construction causes a lowering vof the center of pressure as compared with that of an airship of the -ordinary type, at the same time permitting the center of propulsion to be raised g' and in this manner practicallyY evenly balanced conditions may be realized causing the airship to naturally assume and maintain the horizontal position in flight which corresponds to a minimum air resistance. f Another feature of this construction is that the airship is composed of three stream line shaped bodies having smooth surfaces and sloping sides and ends offering comparatively little resistance to the air through which the airship travels; so that for a given expenditure of power it Iis possible to attain a relatively high rate of speed.

The nov-el features and advantages of my 'Vir' 2 is a rear View in elevation of the ,ship consists ot three fish shaped 11 12 the loneitudinal axes "of which are disposed in an inverted practically'. triangular.arrangementg the twojbodies 10, 11,belng arranged side by side in parallel arrangement aloner the same horizontal plane, and the third Abody 12, being arranged' ceri i thereof in a lower horizontal plane.

These three bodies are each composed ot two relatively shallow convex surfaces sloping both in a lateral and yin a. lo

direction at both ends, alone'` 'their' edges. Said bodiesfare 'urtl'iermore, ar-

rai'i'g'ed withA their maximum width in a horizontal plane ,so as offer a reif ely small resistance to lateral air currents view of their liinitedheight.

The'three bodies mentioned are connected it to one another'by means of/twofout'er series of brace members 1 3, lll, and two inner series of'brace' members 15,' 15, f swell as by reinforcing` end braces17,`18; all these'brace members forming a 'relatively light but "5 rigid structure which i'sturther reinforced by horizontal braces 19,: extendingr between the two uppeil bodies 10, 11.

The two iipper bodies are utilized as gael;v containers, while the central lower body 12y c-.fmstitutcsfthe canportion of the airship iig-,There the motors and@fuel supply-and the living quarters 'for thecrew arelocated. 1f-

desired, acertain portion offcentraljbody 2 may: alsoA be devoted to c ai'rying'an, additional supply of gas in o rderto,increasethe buoyancy eiithe structure.

The front end 2O oiifbodyp12 is preferably "i vg' la pilotroonilwhere the steering and 'na.figating;I devices end instruments may be located. 22 designates the vertical rudder and 23, 24, the horizontal rudderslwhich may bo'controlled in any 'suitablemannen 1t' will `be, observed that due to thev tri.'V

angular arrangement of the 'three bodies, the 'y center of pressure is located at a point intermediate between the upper andthe lower, bodies, so that the propellers 2.5, 2:6,inay be conveniently located Vlaterally of .andV above the rear .end ot body 12,A so as tobe pract1- cally in alignment with the said, center of` pressure, or*` at no great distance therefrom. The Vform ofthe three bod'es of which the structure is composed, which: in :reach case 4vresembles that of a fishA disposed lin a hori proyidedy with raised portion or nose 2 1,Y

zontal plane, causes the finished structure to offer very little resistance to the air both in a lateral and longitudinal' sense, dueto the stream line and smoothness. oi its surfaces; this, coupled with the fact that the structure is evenly balanced in a horizontal drection, produces conditions of minimum resistance tothe longitudinal travel oit the airship.

It will be urtherobserved that in a lateral sense, the twosuperimposed but spaced body thicknesses are relatively shallow and also have gradually sloping' surfaces, oiiering compara ely little resistance to the wind. ln addition to this, it will be observed that the vertical spacing ot the upper set of bodies and thelower body permits air currents to freely i :iss therebetween, and to en. hance the stability ofthe structure by exert'- ingj antagonistic ac-tonsag'ainst the surfaces oil the lower and upperbodies.

Due to` the peculiarI arrangement of' the central lower body 12lhavfngg its upgersur-Y face bulging;A upwardly at- 28 in relation to the inner longitudinal portions of; bodies 10, l1',y the lower surfaces. of which 29, 30

slope upwardly as at 31, 32, towards the center ot the structure,asinuous passage 33' is provided between said' bodies running` rom one side to, the other of the structure, which closely resembles alenturi throat; so tl at the ar can travel at relatively high velocity through the structure without engenderin@` excessive rictional'sui-'tace losses.

Another advantage resulting from the are range ynt describechis the relatively large supporeingi` surface provided vby the threeliorizcntally disposed bodies. Such a surface provides a! parachute or cushioning;

effect which goes to increase the buoyancyo the structure and wh'ch materially assists the same in maintaining` its normal horizontal' p,osition.

The structure describedis' preferably or p the rigid type, but itdesired, a semi-rigid. construction permitt ne" some displacement oi the lower body in relation to tlieupperl bodies-may Aalso be adopted. Such a resultfunits otl which the airship is cemposedmayv be made oi" any suitable material and may be builtin any manner conforming lwith moderny engineering.practice; since the es-A sence ofthe inventionresi-des in the general arrangement ,andf-formu of said units-,g principally in'` sofaras lthe reaction, ofifthe 4air?.y

against 'their i surfaces Yis concer-ned,` andiin so far as their mutual arrangement aiectsthe buoyancy and stability of the structure.

It. is obvious that additional plane sur- -faces `may be employed if desired, in order to assist the lifting power due to the gas carried in the containers.

This and other changes may be introduced in the embodiments of my invention without substantially departing from the inventive idea, the drawings being understood as being intended for illustrative purposes only and not in a limiting sense.

I accordingly reserve to myself the right to carry my invention into practice in any way or manner which may enter, fairly, into the scope of the appended claims.

I claim: n

l. In an airship, the combination of a gas container and a body depending and vertically spaced therefrom, said body consisting of a longitudinally elongated shell, composed of two relatively shallow and wide convex sections-having sloping ends, placed edge to edge, forming a body offering` av relatively small resistance to the air in a lateral rather than in a vertical sense.

2. In an airship, the combination of two elongated gas containers longitudinally directed in parallel spaced arrangement on the sainehorizontal plane and a central body vertically spaced therefrom, depending from said gas containers, said body being in the form of an elongated shell, comprising two relatively shallow and wide convex sections placed edge to edge, and propelling means carried by said body.

3. In an airship, the combination of twov elongated gas containers longitudinally directed in parallel spaced arrangement on the saine horizontal lane, said gas containers being each formed) by two relatively shallow and wide convex sections` placed edge to edge, a body centrally located in relation to said containers and vertically spaced therefrom, said body being' in the form of a relatively shallow and wide elongated shell comprising a lower and an upper section placed edge to edge, said upper shell having a convex surface, and a skeleton structure connecting said two gas containers to each other and to said body.

4l. In an airship, the combination of two elongated gas containers longitudinally directed in parallel spaced arrangement on the same horizontal plane, said gas containers being each formed by two relatively shallow and wide convex sections placed edge to edge, a body centrally located in relation to said containers and vertically spaced therefrom, said body being in the form of an elongated shell comprising two relatively shallow and t wide convex sections placed edge to edge and a skeleton structure con-y necting said two gas containers to each other and to said body.

5. In an airship, the combination of two elongated gas containers longitudinally dielongated shell comprising two relatively shallow and wide convex sections placed edge to edge, a skeleton structure connecting said two gas containers to each other and to said body, propelling means carried by said body, and .steering means for the resulting structure.

6. In an airship, the combination of two elongated gas containers longitudinally. directed in parallel spaced arrangement on the same horizontal plane, saidgas containers being each formed by two relatively shallow and wide convex sections placed edge to edge, a body centrally located in relation to said containers and vertically spaced therefrom, said body. being in the form of an elongated shell comprising two relatively shallow and wide convex sections, placed edge to edge, a skeleton structure connecting said two gas containers to each other and to said body, and propelling means for the resulting structure symmetrically located in the vertical space separating said gas containers from said body..

7. In an airship, the combination of two elongated gas containers longitudinally directed in parallel spaced arrangement on the same horizontal plane, said gas containlers being each formed by two relatively shallow and wide convex sections placed edge to edge, a body centrally located in relation to said containers and vertically spaced therefrom, said' body being in the form of. an elongated shell comprising two relatively shallow and wide' convex sections, placed edge to edge, a skeleton structure connecting said two gas containers to each other and to said body, propelling means for the resulting structure symmetrically located in the vertical space se arating said gas containers from said bo and steering means interposed between said containers' and said body adjacent the rear ends thereof.

AUGUST FABER.

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